‘My Fellow South Africans’ takes place next week at Thomas More College. Kim Blanche Adonis will play many roles, addressing various issues in South Africa and making audiences think about their country. PICTURE: SUPPLIED
Durban - “We thought Cyril Ramaphosa was taking us into his confidence at his Covid ‘family meetings’, but we never had the chance to speak back as ‘family members’. So, this piece is about speaking to our fellow citizens; to provoke everyone to think and talk; and then take action to make our country the South Africa we want,” said “My Fellow South Africans” playwright Mike van Graan.
The play will be held at Thomas More College in Kloof, Durban, on Wednesday. Van Graan said the name of the play was deliberate, using the phrase delivered by Ramaphosa at the start of each “family meeting”.
“The play is a satirical piece that takes on many contemporary South African themes – corruption, transformation, fees must fall, inequality and privilege, racism and xenophobia – but it does so in a way that makes audiences laugh while getting them to think afresh about these themes. The main intention of the piece – which we hope to run until the elections next year – is to encourage audiences to think about our country and to be engaged as active citizens in helping to change it for the better, with the elections representing one such opportunity,” he said.
Van Graan said the school had hosted some of his previous plays, such as “Little Red Riding Hood and The Big Bad Metaphors”. The school has also studied his works in their syllabus.
The play is an hour long and involves 12 or 13 sketches that ultimately seek to inspire and leave audiences with a sense of hope about what is possible, he added. These sketches will be played by one person ‒ Kim Blanche Adonis, who takes on many different roles.
The high school head of culture and dramatic arts, Meg Logan, said providing the venue for the play was “an excellent opportunity for our dramatic arts pupils to engage with his satirical work and to continue a valued relationship with a prominent South African playwright whose work often forms part of the IEB syllabus.“
Logan added that bringing outside professional companies to the school allowed pupils to view work of a high calibre, sparking thought-provoking conversations that extend to pupils intellectually.
“Viewing highly talented professionals in the industry also challenges pupils to hone their own performance skills,” she said.
Tickets for the show are R100 and bookings can be made on Quicket.co.za. Under 16s will not be allowed entry.
The Independent on Saturday